Ladies and gents, I trust you folks are well and enjoying the good weather – finally. The Mrs. and I travel now, but she does all the driving. As the ole saying goes –“if I knew I was going to live this long I would have taken better care of myself… “ On the other hand, I’m holding my own, the eyesight has improved some and other issues seem to be coming around nicely.

I graze the web site from time to time - Good topics exchanged back and forth here.

Here in Western Massachusetts the weather hasn’t befriended a lot of ball fields, and we get cold spells still. It’s nice to see the boys of summer back at it again.

The Mrs. and I Spent some time in Amsterdam, N.Y. recently. Some good ball. I started to ask around when I saw some decent talent –“what’s the youngster’s name?” only to be dragged away by the bride along with … “you’re retired, remember…. Let’s go.”

What a happy day to hear from you John, thank Mary Lou for us all!
8)
All that cold snapping ain’t good for old bones…it’s why they do spring training down here…so come on down…as I tell Dino all the time…I’ll buy you the best Ma’hi sandwich your lips ever wrapped around…and ya know…you “ain’t lived” til you’ve had some-o-dat…

This posting is taking me a long time to do, so excuse the diction and the spelling errors.

Last Saturday I was in Amsterdam, New York visiting the family of a man I coached back in the 80’s. Both he and I were with that club during the last three years of its existence, it went chapter 11. He succumbed to complications with a sickness that started during his last year with that club, and during the late 90’s he finally was home bound. He passed away this February.

While my Mrs. was driving us back home, I couldn’t help but think how short life is and how hard we all try to do something with that gift – life. Some better than others, but then, who’s to judge.

Then I thought about the businesss, the coaching aspects. I battered about, this and that, not going anywhere specific… only to be asked after 30 minutes of talking to myself by my wife… “were you talking to me?”
It’s a good life to coach and bring about someone else’s dreams and hopes, their give and take. To watch success and failures alike, knowing all the while there’s really no such experience that I’ll feel – only to watch someone else’s. Life should be issued to us with re-runs, you know. To go back and do something, anything justa little different. Perhaps I would had done better by someone, or even been given a chance myself. I don’t know.

The people, both young and not so young, fathers, moms, amaterur coaches, and the like owe you folks a great deal of thanks. Here with questions and circumstances, offers a degree of civility and honest observatons that I haven’t found much of in this life.

I know this is a bit of rambling –my Mr.s tells me that all the time. I misss the businessss more than I thought, the people who mattered, the young ones with so much to learn, heck I even miss thedrunks and the guy s that were always broke – Steve knows wihat I’m talking about.
I absolutely hate this instante replay stuff. I’d clean my pen out in a heartbeat if that was laid on me while I was coaching.

I n any event, it takes me a while to read the topics here, but I enjoy the job that you folks are doing. Your all genuine people. You do ourt National Pastime proud.

Speaking for myself John, thanks for all you’ve done…and you’ve done way more than enough.

When you check in it reminds me of a good friend my dad had. He would stop over at the house once in a blue moon and bring his guitar. My dad and him would sit and play and sing country songs all night in the living room. The whole family would get in there too, eat and drink and laugh have a great time.

Then he’d leave and the whole house would get dead quiet. I’d lay in bed bug eyed staring at the ceiling trying to sleep and thinking, “Man, I wish he’d stop by more often.” The next day, we’d go about our business our separate ways. The guy just always had a way of bringing us together. It is a gift you know.

I saw a backstop for a club we had a game with, during a pregame field session, spending a lot of time next to the fan rails along the first baseline. His coaching staff didn’t seem to mind. Not like our coaching staff who would give a “get moving son” when one of ours would doddle along with fans – usually of the female persuasion.

Come to find out they were newlyweds and his playing schedule didn’t leave any room for a honeymoon. I did notice that the guy was preoccupied- missing a good portion of the game because of … well …. certain
distractions.

After the second inning, I watched a stadium usher move the young lady to the front row seats, directly over his team’s dugout.

As such, his initial glances back to his new bride were met, only about a foot below where she sat, where a lineup of his skipper and three staff coaches … all standing on the front step of their dugout with their arms crossed over their chest, and the bill of their baseball cap casting a dark and ominous shadow over the eyes. This collection of concrete faces soon did the trick for the catcher. A smile on his face soon turned to …” oh, right…” back to business.